Hammād, from Qatādah, from ‘Ikrimah, from Ibn ‘Abbās, from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), who said, ‘I saw my Lord, Mighty and Majestic.’” Ibn Abī ‘Āsim added nothing beyond this, though the hadith is well known in its full form.

The point here is that, concerning Ibn ‘Abbās’s statement, “He saw Him twice,” he answered, “That is His light—His very light. When He manifests Himself in His light, nothing can grasp Him,” when asked about the Most High’s words:

“No vision can grasp Him.” [al-An‘ām 103]

This implies that both occasions involved seeing with the eyes, even though it is established in the Sahīh, on his authority, that the Prophet saw Him with his heart twice. He also mentioned this in explaining the verse. This lends weight to the possibility that, in his view, seeing with the heart amounts to seeing with the eyes specifically for prophets, not for others. When this verse was raised as an objection, he answered it. On this understanding, Ibn ‘Abbās’s statements are consistent, and this is the more plausible interpretation.

Then al-Tirmidhī narrated the hadith of Muhammad ibn ‘Amr, from Abū